Investigative Panel Queries Reagan on Iran Arms Deal

President Reagan spent more than an hour Monday with the three-member investigative commission he appointed in the wake of the disclosure of the Iran- contra arms affair, reviewing his role in the operation, the growth of his Administration’s policy toward Iran and U.S. foreign policy in general, the White House said.

The White House refused to disclose details of Reagan’s remarks, saying in a written statement only that “in the course of the meeting, the President answered all of the panel’s questions.”

For Reagan, the meeting, which took place as a 24-hour snowstorm was ending, reflected an increase in the tempo of his workday, three weeks after he underwent surgery for an enlarged prostate. It also placed him visibly in the midst of one aspect of the Administration’s effort to deal with the arms affair, even if behind closed doors.

The commission was appointed by Reagan on Nov. 26, a day after the public disclosure by Atty. Gen. Edwin Meese III that funds from the sale of weapons to Iran had been diverted to Nicaraguan rebels. The panel is examining the work of the National Security Council staff, which is made up of military aides and civilian experts. It was among this staff that the arms sale plan was hatched.

The members of the panel, known as the Special Review Board, made no comment after the White House meeting. The commissioners are former Sen. John Tower (R-Tex.), the chairman; Edmund S. Muskie, former secretary of state, and retired Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft, who was the national security adviser under former President Gerald R. Ford.

Although the panel was charged with reviewing NSC workings in general, it was the Iran operation that led to the study. Key questions in the Iran affair have been the extent of the President’s knowledge of the operation and the weight he attached to freeing the American hostages in Lebanon.

Officials have said Reagan was unaware of the diversion of money to the Nicaraguan contras until Nov. 24. The President has said that the Iran effort was intended primarily to open ties to Iranian moderates and that the release of the captives was a secondary goal.

Second Session Discussed

The White House said after the 76-minute meeting with the commissioners that “it is anticipated that they will accept the President’s invitation for an additional meeting.” Such a session would underline White House efforts to portray Reagan as eager to make public as much information as possible.

But Herbert Hetu, a spokesman for the commission, raised questions about whether there would be a second meeting, saying: “We haven’t decided if we need one.”

In the meeting Monday, the White House statement said, Reagan and the panel dealt in a “wide-ranging review” with “the factual history of the President’s role in the Iran initiative.”

In preparation for the session, Reagan reviewed material gathered by aides who reconstructed the Iran operation, White House spokesman Larry Speakes said. He said before the session that notes would be made but no transcript.

Mondale to Be Interviewed

The panel’s work is drawing to a close, with only one more meeting--with former Vice President Walter F. Mondale--on its schedule. The group met Sunday in Washington with Ford and Friday with former President Richard M. Nixon. Earlier last week, the commissioners traveled to Plains, Ga., to interview former President Jimmy Carter.

The panel has conducted 47 interviews and is scheduled to present its report to Reagan on Feb. 19--three weeks after its initial deadline. The delay in completing the study was caused at least to some extent by the time it took for a meeting to be set up with Reagan.

Until this week, most of Reagan’s appointments in the Oval Office since the surgery have been with senior members of his staff.

State of Union

This morning, he will meet with congressional leaders for the first time this year, and in the evening he will deliver his sixth State of the Union address--his first major speech since the Iran-contra affair began to dominate the Administration’s agenda more than two months ago. The televised address will be delivered at 6 p.m. PST.

The address is considered by some Republicans to be one of the more important speeches of Reagan’s career. They believe that he must refer to the Iran operation without dwelling on it, maintaining that the affair has not crippled the Administration.

Reagan is expected to attempt to focus the attention of his audience on economic progress and his efforts to achieve an arms control agreement with the Soviet Union.